I Don't Need A Parachute If I Have You
by Frozenfractal
Summary: Med school was no longer enough, and Arizona Robbins wanted to find a more direct way to help people. She needed new perspectives. But when she decided to follow her brother in the army, she didn't know the change she was asking for would completely turn her world upside down.
1. Prologue

**Disclamer : I do not own Grey's Anatomy or any recognizable characters.**

 **AN: Hey there ! So, I've been reading tons of fanfictions for a while now, and I finally decided to write my own. It is my first one and English is not my first language, so I apologize for any potential mistake. Feel free to point them out to me as I would love to improve my writing :)**

 **This one goes to my Maura Isles. We both think there's not enough Addizona in this FF world !**

 **Reviews and advices are very welcome ;)**

 **On that note, on with the story !**

* * *

 **PROLOGUE**

 _Arizona knew what she had to do. She had thought about it long enough, and now, she couldn't afford to waste any more time.  
She grabbed her weapon and her backpack, and glanced one last time at the nursery's door._

 ** _-"I'm sorry…"_**

 _A look of regret briefly crossed her face, but she quickly regained her composure. With blazing eyes and sheer determination in her steps, she finally walked towards the exit door, determined to face whatever danger might come her way. Aware that this wouldn't be easy.  
Aware that she might not like what she would see._

 _Aware that she might not come back…_


	2. Leaving the nest

**Disclamer in the prologue**

 **AN : I don't know much about my country's military system, and even less about the American one. Therefore, there will very likely be incoherences in the story. And I apologize. Again, don't hesitate to talk to me about them. I'll do my best to rectify them.  
Enjoy !**

* * *

 _Two years earlier_.

-"Sweetie, are you really sure about this ?"

The blonde rolled her eyes for what seemed to be the hundredth time today.

-"Yes, mom. I'm sure about this."

They were in the middle of the airport, waiting for the plane that would take Arizona and her brother to Iraq.

Arizona Robbins was a twenty-two year old girl with silky blond hair and sparkly blue eyes. She had just finished her third year of medical school. She had always wanted to be a surgeon. Her ambition and her natural talent had always helped her be at the top of her class.  
Arizona was a passionate girl who always aimed for nothing less than excellence. But lately, she had been starting to have second thoughts. Of course, she still wanted to save lives. But what if she could help somewhere else and in another way ?

Her brother Timothy, who was five years her senior, was a soldier. He had been in Iraq for two years before he came back to Seattle to visit his family two months ago.  
The two of them had always been very close. Arizona had always admired her brother's bravery and his commitment to his country. Timothy had also been very supportive when she came out to him. He only asked her if it meant she would "marry a chick" and, smiling from ear to ear, said that he was gonna dance so hard at her wedding.

Yes, Arizona loved her brother more than anyone. So, when he told her about the things he saw in Iraq, the people getting killed every day because of a war in which they shouldn't be involved; she made up her mind. When the blonde heard about the horrendous things happening across the ocean, she decided to join the army.  
She wanted to physically help those who needed it. She wanted to serve her country in another way than comfortably staying between four walls in a hospital. More than anything, she wanted to feel useful NOW. The many years of medical school she still had left wouldn't allow her to do that.  
She had already received the necessary training anyway. Her father being a colonel, he had always insisted on the importance of a military education. With his name and her brother's reputation, it didn't take long for Arizona to receive the approval to join the forces posted in Iraq.

Her mother had been worried sick ever since she told her parents about her decision. She had been more smothering than ever, constantly trying to knock some sense into her daughter's thick head. It was different with her father. Even though he was worried to see his baby girl join the battle in such a dangerous area, he was quite proud that both of his children decided to follow his footsteps and to practice what he thought was one of the most glorifying professions on this planet.

Now that they were standing in the lobby though, it seemed he had decided to side with his wife.

-"But, what about med school ? You always said it was your dream !"

-"Dad, I'm not dropping out of med school permanently. I just need a break to make sure it really is where I belong."

Arizona's mother looked at her in a way only mothers do when they want to make their child feel guilty.

-"You don't need to risk your life to figure this out. You could work with me at the shop." She said.

She heard Timothy snort next to her. This time, Arizona turned around to face her parents.

-"No, mom ! I am certainly not going to work at the shop !" She firmly stated, starting to be really annoyed by her mother's antics.

"Besides, that would also be risking my life since I'd probably die of boredom…"

She had muttered the last part under her breath, but the sudden giggle her brother tried pathetically to mask as a cough let her know he heard her.  
She tried to hide the smile threatening to break out on her face as she continued,

-"This is not me having some sort of identity crisis. This is me wanting to help people at the very source of their problems ! Right now, I can't picture myself sitting on my ass, waiting for a gurney to burst through the doors and bring me a patient like I'm some kind of fancy old lady waiting for her food to be served in a five star restaurant ! I need to be directly where it begins, to be able to prevent people from taking an unnecessary trip to a crappy hospital !"

She hadn't realized that at some point, she had started yelling. Some people were staring weirdly at her after her outburst.

-"Arizona Robbins, language !"

Of course, leave it to her mother to lecture her in the middle of a discussion that important, she thought, definitely annoyed now.

-"Yeah, come on sis, Timothy said, wouldn't want the family's badass genius to have a potty mouth !"

She hit him in the arm, but the corners of her mouth were twitching. Another thing she loved about her brother. He was always able to ease the tension.  
Timothy finally decided to put his sister out of her misery.

-"Listen, I know Arizona didn't always make the right decisions. And we all know how infuriatingly stubborn and impulsive she is !"

The blonde frowned and whispered to him,

-"What the hell ? Not really helping here, Tim !"

Her brother ignored her and just kept going.

-"BUT", he said, looking pointedly at her, "We also know she never gives up. And, in the end, things always seem to work out for her. She knows how to learn from her mistakes. Even if she's never willing to admit she made a mistake in the first place… Anyway, my point is that I think we should just trust her judgement here. I do."

When he was finished, their parents looked more convinced. Arizona smiled gratefully at her brother, when a smug grin appeared on his face and he said,

-"Besides, if, or rather when she'll get herself in trouble, her amazingly strong and handsome big brother will be there to save the day !"

-"COME ON !"

Mr. and Mrs. Robbins laughed at their children's behavior as Arizona tried to hit Timothy, while he just grabbed her wrists and started to make fun of her.  
Their son was right. Arizona had always turned out well. This time shouldn't be any different.  
A voice echoing in the lobby announced that their plane would be leaving in thirty minutes. Arizona's parents glanced at each other and both nodded, releasing a heavy breath.

Their little girl was going to war.


	3. Making a hell of an impression

**I'd like to thank everyone who now follow the story or favorited it !**

 **To those who asked : I'm really sorry, but Callie won't be in this story. This is an Addizona fanfic, BUT everything is already planned in my head, and I can already tell that there WILL BE a sequel in which I'll include Callie. So stick with me until then if you feel like it, but if you don't I'll understand ^^**

 **Here comes chapter 2 !**

* * *

The flight had been long and exhausting. Arizona hadn't been able to fully relax, getting more and more nervous with each passing hour. Timothy's constant snoring didn't help either. Her brother had slept almost through the entire flight, unaware of his sister literally freaking out right next to him.

The blonde had been staring a long time out the window, looking into the blue sky, watching as the clouds flew by. She couldn't help but wonder what kind of things she would have to face over there. What exactly would be expected from her? Would she be allowed to be useful immediately, or would she have to prove herself first ? She wanted nothing more than help as soon as possible.

She could feel a headache coming on. She looked at her brother who was still peacefully sleeping beside her. His chin was resting on his chest and he was drooling lightly. There was no denying that Arizona and Timothy shared the same genes. Though his hair was a bit darker than his sister's and he had a more pronounced jaw, they had the same blue eyes and the same dimples when they smiled. Two traits that made them very popular around girls. Yes, the Robbins children were quite the womanizers. But recently, Timothy had met a woman who was, according to him, the One. She was also a soldier, and the two had met in Iraq while they were on the same mission. When Timothy came back home, she was the only thing he seemed to be able to talk about. His sister had never seen him this way; and even if she was happy to finally see him in love, sometimes she really wanted to smack that stupid lovesick smile off his face.

As for Arizona, she had yet to find the woman who would tame her. But, to be honest, the blonde didn't really think she existed. Sure, she believed in love. But commitment was something she just wasn't into. At least, for now.

A frown formed on Timothy's face and he grunted in his sleep.

-"I don't want whipped cream… Leave my fucking pancakes alone, Katy Perry !"

Arizona rolled her eyes but couldn't contain the grin that spread across her face as she shook her head affectionately. Timothy might be her big brother, but there were times like this where he just looked like a child. With a fond smile still plastered on her face, she closed her eyes and tried to get some sleep.

 **oOoOoOoOo**

The base was exactly as Arizona imagined. A large space surrounded by tall, reinforced fences. Steel buildings were scattered all over the place. She could see a more massive one, made of concrete at the back of the site. This one was visibly older, the walls were cracked in several places, and the roof had obviously seen better days.

Arizona felt a lump in her throat. This place had been here before the war began. It could have been a school or a hospital. In any case, it had been a shelter before. Somewhere people used to feel safe. But that was before their lives had been ripped apart by the violence of the war. Now, this building protected soldiers, fighting people.

The blonde forced herself to look away, shaking off these thoughts. She couldn't let herself feel sad and sorry now. She looked at the people around her. Seeing as most seemed to know each other, she guessed they were soldiers coming back after their permission, just like Tim. But others looked as insecure as she felt, looking around them, some with worried eyes, and others just merely curious. Arizona noticed she wasn't the only woman. A brunette was standing further on her left, looking very nervous. She was constantly biting her lower lip, fidgeting with her fingers. Arizona felt sorry for her. This girl looked like a kid waiting outside the principal's office.

That made Arizona wonder what exactly they were all waiting for. Was someone coming to greet them ? They had been standing outside for more than ten minutes now, and the weather was pretty hot. The sun was high and there wasn't a single cloud to protect them even slightly from the heat. The dry air was suffocating, and pearls of sweat had started to form on her forehead.

The blonde turned to her brother in order to ask him why they were still here, but to her surprise, he wasn't by her side anymore. Scarcely alarmed, she whipped her head around, looking for him.

Timothy could be a jerk, but he wouldn't have left her, would he ?

Finally, she spotted him a few steps away. He was happily chatting with two people. Probably some friends of his. A tall brown haired man with stubble was laughing while a blonde woman with a ponytail was shaking her head with an amused smile.

Arizona wiped a hand over her face and moved forward to join them. As soon as she arrived in front of them, the two strangers stopped laughing and looked at her. With a shy smile, Arizona cleared her throat to get her brother's attention. Timothy turned his head and a bright smile appeared across his face when he saw her. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and faced his friends, smile still etched on his face.

-"So, guys. This tiny one is my baby sister, Arizona ! Arizona, meet Teddy and Mark !"

The blonde, who had rolled her eyes in annoyance at being called "tiny", elbowed Timothy in the ribs before extending her hand, smirking, to shake the ones that were presented to her.

-"I might be tiny, but that doesn't stop me from kicking this dummy's ass…"

-"You wish !" exclaimed Timothy.

-"Do I need to remind you of the pizza incident ?"

The young man's eyes went wide.

-"You wouldn't !"

Arizona could hear the minor concern in his voice. With a devilish smile, she said:

-"Call me tiny one more time and you'll see for yourself what I'm fully capable of."

She knew she had won the argument when her brother just puffed his cheeks and looked away, putting his hands on his hips. The blonde bit her tongue to hold the laugh that was about to come out of her mouth. But, next to her, Teddy and Mark didn't bother with discretion. They were both giggling, not caring about their friend's bruised ego.  
Teddy looked at Arizona with amusement and something akin to admiration written on her face.

-"I have to say, I already like you ! As your brother told you, I'm Teddy Altman. I'm part of the medical staff. Mark Sloan here is a sergeant."

-"Nice to meet you both." Arizona beamed at them, but she couldn't help but notice Mark was looking at her with a strange look and a smile that was supposed to be… Charming ? Was he about to hit on her ?

 _Oh, this is gonna be fun._ She thought. A second later, just as she expected, Mark winked at her.

-"Well, Robbins told us he had a sister, but he forgot to mention how spicy she was. I guess the cutest ones are always those you have to be careful of."

Teddy rolled her eyes. It didn't take five minutes to Mark to start hitting on the new girl. Her friend would never change. Timothy, understanding what Mark was up to, struggled to suppress his smile. If only the brunette knew whom he was making a move on, he would shut up immediately.

-"Don't you have a girlfriend ?" Teddy said

-"Ah, um. We're on a break…"

-"I really wonder why…" Arizona scoffed, making Teddy smirk.

-"Another kudo point for Robbins junior ! I didn't know your sister was such a delight, Tim !"

But Mark seemed unfazed. His signature smile back on his lips, he just carried on.

-"Come on. What's the first thing you notice about a man ?"

Arizona pretended to think on it a moment, before she arched an eyebrow and a corner of her mouth quirked.

-"His girlfriend."

Timothy and Teddy burst out laughing while Mark just looked confused. Giggling, Arizona clarified for him.

-"I'm gay, Mark."

His mouth snapped open and he suddenly looked like he wanted to be anywhere but here.

Teddy tried to regain control of her laughter, tears now pooling in her eyes.

-"That… was… priceless ! Okay, now I totally know we're going to be really good friends !"

Timothy suddenly stopped laughing. He was now looking ahead, frowning. Arizona tried to see what caught her brother's attention. A woman was coming their way. She was wearing a uniform, and her red hair was pulled up into a ponytail. She was walking very quickly, her scowl deepening with every step she took. Arizona shivered. This woman looked beyond pissed.

Upon noticing the redhead, Teddy's eyes widened.

-"Uh oh. Mark, your almost ex-girlfriend is here. And she looks like she's going to bite your head off. What the hell did you do ?!"

Before Mark could answer, the redhead abruptly stopped in front of him.

-"Finally, there you are ! The colonel asked for you half an hour ago ! And since everyone seems to think we're still together, they sent me to do the dirty work. I spent the last twenty minutes running around this damn place like a headless chicken ! I have more important things to do than try to find your sorry ass, Mark !"

To say the brunette looked scared would be an understatement. He gulped as he tried to come up with something. But the few words that came from his mouth made the other three cringe.

-"Geez, Addison. Chill out !"

The death glare he received and the sight of Addison's face turning so red it was matching her hair made him run for the hills. Not sparing a glance at his friends, he just yelled something about not making the colonel wait any longer over his shoulder, although everyone could almost hear the unspoken "I don't have a death wish." he was thinking.

When he was gone, Addison released a deep breath through her nose and turned to the others, making them flinch.

-"I swear this guy is the biggest moron I've ever met !"

She pinched the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes. When she opened them, her gaze landed on Arizona. The blonde squirmed under the redhead's prying eyes. She couldn't tell if they were blue or gray. But the intense stare she was receiving was making her really uncomfortable. She felt like she was being scanned, or gauged. When her brain finally decided to catch up, she offered Addison an awkward smile and opened her mouth to introduce herself. But before she could say anything, the redhead snorted and rolled her eyes.

-"Now I can see what was taking him so long…"

The blonde was left with her mouth hanging open, wondering if she heard right. This woman didn't know her, and yet, she just felt she had the right to judge her. Her face hardened and her lips formed a thin line. She was about to give her a piece of her mind, but Teddy, sensing the tension, spoke first.

-"Umm. Addison, this is Arizona Robbins. Timothy's sister. She just got here."

Addison's eyes shifted from the tall man to his sister.

-"Following your big brother's steps, huh ? That's nice. Welcome Robbins n°2. Oh, and just so you know, not everyone here is like Mark. So don't imagine your pretty face and your name will get you everything you want.", she said, sneering at the blonde.

That struck a chord. It took Arizona back to high school times. When everyone either thought she was just a chirpy stupid blonde, or expected her to do as well as her brother. If she got a B, teachers would just remind her that Timothy only got straight A's. When she said she wasn't interested in being prom queen, people had been surprised, expecting her to take part in the competition since Timothy had been prom king. Whatever she did, he had done better. That's one of the reasons Arizona had loved medical school so much. There, she wasn't living in her brother's shadow anymore. She was no longer "the other Robbins", she was able to be Arizona. Her parents and Timothy himself were the only people who had never expected her to be her brother's copy.

The blonde clenched her fists and looked Addison dead in the eye.

-"Maybe my name helped me get here faster, but it doesn't mean I'm less capable than anyone else ! I came to help people, to save lives ! Not to reenact some sort of "Legally Blonde" bullshit ! I'm not here because the applications for beauty school were closed. I'm here because I want it. And you can mock me all you want, but I'm not the one bluntly judging someone I don't even know.", she snarled.

Addison looked taken aback by the sudden change in the blonde's mood. She looked down at her feet in what seemed to be shame and smiled politely, turning her gaze to Teddy and Timothy who were glancing back and forth between the two women, not knowing how to react.

-"Well," she said, clearing her throat, "I was supposed to tell you all to get inside and wait for the general. He was supposed to meet you here, but something came up and needed to be taken care of. I have to get back to work. I guess I'll see you later."

With one last quick look at Arizona, she turned around and left. The blonde sighed. She hadn't meant for her first day to be like that. She didn't intend to butt heads with her fellows, let alone those who seemed to be her brother's friends. But this woman had been extremely obnoxious and rude. She had pushed her buttons, and Arizona had done what she always does when she feels threatened, she had struck back.

Timothy, sensing his sister's discomfort, put a hand on her shoulder and started to lead her toward the main building.

-"Come on. We should go inside. Don't read much into what happened. I mean, I know what Addison said was completely inappropriate, but it's not like her to gratuitously lash out at someone like that." He said pensively.

-"Yeah," Teddy added, "she really is a sweetheart usually. I guess you just met her on one of her bad days."

-"Yay, lucky me !", Arizona responded sarcastically, "It's so nice to meet a woman the day she has PMS !"

The blonde next to her chuckled, but Timothy just made a face in disgust.

-"Aaaaw, gross !" he whined, making the two women laugh harder.

-"Come on, don't be a baby ! You see blood all the time !" Teddy mocked.

-"That's not the same ! Gunshot wounds I can deal with. Your stuff is a totally different kind of war !"

-"More like Game of Thrones occurring in my uterus." Arizona added mischievously.

-"FOR GOD'S SAKE !"

With that, he stomped away, grumbling something about "damn women" and leaving the two blondes dissolving into laughter behind him.

* * *

 **Reviews are my best friends ! :3**


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